In the pursuit of “have 2.1 kids to ensure our population is stable”, the Singaporean government has created a culture that is ironically anti-parenting, and is essentially, for all purposes, a breeding farm.

Singapore "Three or More" (if you can afford it) Policy

More often than not, I see and hear stories of couples who, after getting married, pop out a couple (pun unintended) and thrust their flesh-and-blood into the hands of either their parents or their maid(s).

Now, most of the time, the (grand)parents and maids don’t mind. Why would they? The former may be getting their empty nest filled, while the latter gets paid to do so – although these 2 conditions may not necessarily be mutually exclusive.

Many of the sequels to these stories include but are not limited to: parents wondering why their children is closer to their grandparents or their maid, children thinking up ways to gain their parents’ attention (read: crime), maids abusing babies…

What happened to parents loving their children, being there for them, showing them the ways of the world? Now they’re just out to fill the kid quota and get their child bonuses.

My mom constantly nags at me to get married and have a kid so my dad can have someone to take out (in Chinese, 给你爸爸牵). I told her I’d get them a dog from SPCA – at least they’ll be doing the dog a favour.